Homestead lap by lap notes

RACE NOTES - - Round 1 - - 1997 KOOL/Toyota Atlantic hampionship:

5:25 p.m. Pace car on course for two pace laps with 29 Atlantic cars.

Lap 1 #14 WEST leads the field to the start-finish line and takes the GREEN FLAG under cloudy skies and extremely humid conditions ... #43 BARBOSA passes #66 TAGLIANI for fifth place; #8 SOLLENSKOG jumps from ninth to seventh place.

Lap 1 #3 DAVID, #10 TAGUE, and #50 WILDEN become tangled corner 12; #50 WILDEN looses his rear wing; #3 DAVID and #10 TAGUE are forced to retire due to contact damage; #50 WILDEN continues; brings out FULL-COURSE CAUTION.

Lap 2 #50 WILDEN retires due to earlier contact damage.

Lap 8 Races resumes ... #14 WEST maintains lead followed by #19 GIDLEY, #4 LAZZAR0, #29 MONTGOMERY, and #43 BARBOSA.

Lap 9 #19 GIDLEY collides with #14 WEST at the entrance to turn one ... #19 GIDLEY's right front wing hits #4 WEST's left front tirel #19 GIDLEY moves to the inside and takes the lead; #14 WEST looses control and spins out in turn one, strikes the outside wall; driver out and okay; brings out a YELLOW FLAG; #19 GIDLEY reported with damage to right side front wing; #4 LAZZARO moves into second place; #29 MONTGOMERY moves into third place.

Lap 15 Race resumes

Lap 16 #9 GIDLEY runs off-course (drivers right) in turn 10; returns to course in turn 12, but drops to 13th ... #29 MONTGOMERY assumes the lead followed closely by #4 LAZZARO.

Lap 20 The leaders are #29 MONTGOMERY, #4 LAZZARO, and #43 BARBOSA; #47 HARRINGTON is the C2 leader and 16th place overall; #34 AUBERLEN goes on the inside of the final turn before the oval and makes contact with #8 SOLLENSKOG; #8 SOLLENSKOG stops on course and retires from the race.

Lap 22 YELLOW FLAG

Lap 23 #32 BARRON retires with gearbox problems.

Lap 29 Race resumes.

Lap 30 The leaders are #29 MONTGOMERY, #4 LAZZARO, #43 BARBOSA, #33 GODIN, and #19 GIDLEY.

Lap 39 #47 HARRINGTON retires due to broken oil line.

Lap 40 The leaders are #29 MONTGOMERY, #4 LAZZARO, #19 GIDLEY, #33 GODIN, and #43 BARBOSA.

Lap 42 #96 SCHROEDER pits with reported battery problem, and continues after brief stop.

Lap 44 #43 BARBOSA passes #33 GODIN for fourth place.

Lap 48 #4 LAZZARO passes #29 MONTGOMERY for the lead.

Lap 49 #19 GIDLEY passes #29 MONTGOMERY for second place.

Lap 50 #4 ANTHONY LAZZARO, of Acworth, Ga., wins his SECOND CAREER ATLANTIC race in the Phillips Motorsports prepared-Platinum Sound/BG Products Ralt RT-41. LAZZARO's first Atlantic victory came in June, 1996, in round four at the Milwaukee Mile.

MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.509-seconds WINNERS AVERAGE SPEED: 84.662 miles-per-hour TIME OF RACE: 49 minutes, 36.52 seconds

#19 MEMO GIDLEY, of San Rafael, Calif., makes his Atlantic debut and finishes second in the Lynx Racing Ralt RT-41.

#29 CASE MONTGOMERY, of Salinas, Calif., rounds out the podium finishes in the Sandy Dells Racing-Microsoft/Wall Data Ralt RT-41.

* * *

LAZZARO takes an early lead in the 1997 KOOL/Toyota Atlantic Championship with 20 points for today's victory. * * *

LAZZARO, by virtue of today's victory, collects a total winner's purse of $22,000 including $20,000 from the posted purse of $85,000, and $1,000 for being named the "KOOL Move Of The Race" winner, and $1,000 for winning the "Yokohama Now You've Got Control" award.

* * * GIDLEY wins a $1,000 bonus from the "KOOL Rookie Challenge" winner for being the highest finishing Atlantic rookie driver.

* * *

GIDLEY ran the fastest race lap at a TRACK RECORD pace of 0:41.694 = 120.880 miles-per-hour. This betters the previous record of 0:41.961 = 120.11 mph set by LEE BENTHAM in March, 1996.

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